The third United Nations world conference on disaster risk reduction is concluding today in Sendai.  Global Resilience Collaborative has been following the developments thanks to web video streaming and other document sharing means. Since the last conference in 2005 when the delegates agreed to endorse Hyogo Framework for Action recommending the way forward for global resilience building, many large scale natural disasters have occurred including the host country’s triple disaster in the eastern region (Fukushima earthquake, tsunami and nuclear reactor failure), Super-cyclone Sandy, Cyclone Yolanda, Queensland Floods, Central European Floods and many more.

We recommend you visiting the conference home page as it has trove of documents resulting from the conference which undoubtedly will play the key role in the global policy and practice in developing disaster resilient societies.  With a slight bias toward the Australian members of the Global Resilience Collaborative we wish to share with you excerpts from the statement by the Hon. Michael Keenan, Minister for Justice made on the first day of the conference.

“We strongly welcome this opportunity to take action, and strengthen disaster resilience by adopting a new framework that builds on considerable success of the Hyogo Framework.”

“In Australia we have come a long way in our journey to build our resilience in shifting our focus from ‘response and recovery’ to ‘preparation and mitigation’.”

“As I noted previously Australia is situated in a vulnerable region, and we are committed to building co-operative partnerships to support resilience through our aid program.”

“It is important that we take action now to build resilience, and we implore member states to do so.”

“We also know failure to do so is a missed opportunity that will impact hardest on the people who are the most vulnerable.”

Full speech available on the conference website: http://webtv.un.org/watch/michael-keenan-australia-3rd-plenary-meeting/4112026583001